Here’s a link with some job ads: https://law.robsonhall.com/blog/category/job-postings/articling/
In early May firms/law offices also do mass articling interviews in conjunction with the CDO at U of M. However, for the most part they hire for articling positions about a year in advance, so it’s the incoming 3L class that they interview as opposed to recent grads. If I’m remembering this correctly (it’s been a while), various firms will advertise positions on the Robson Hall “job board” page, you apply by e-mailing your resume/cover letter and, if applicable, transcripts, to that firm and hope they contact you for an interview. The kind of grades you’ll need/how much weight will be given to them will likely vary quite a bit depending on the firm. For instance, Legal Aid doesn’t ask for transcripts at all.
Here’s the link to the CDO: https://law.robsonhall.com/career-development-office-2/. Click on “for students” and then “job board” and then contact Lisa Griffin about getting a password to access it (not sure how that’ll work for someone who isn’t a student at the U of M).
*if I’ve messed up any of the details here, feel free to correct me, current U of M students.

My undergrad degree was in Spanish, which probably isn't super relevant to the study of law. Nevertheless, I have made it almost all the way through at this point. Additionally, I have a friend who went to law school after finishing only two years of her degree. Academically she has done fine and has her first choice articling position lined up for when she graduates.

Not terribly competitive. Unless you apply in late summer you're likely to get your first choice. Also, the campus is super isolated from the rest of the city (even the other parts of Pembina Highway, which is terribly spread out) and I find it worth it to live on campus simply because of that. You're looking at probably having to commute at least 20 minutes if you live elsewhere and plan on taking public transit to campus which if you have a 9am class can be a PITA. Also, I didn't mention this earlier but Pembina Hall has an en-suite bathroom; in the case of Arthur Mauro you have to share with your roommate. There is no ideal housing situation if you're moving to Winnipeg to go the U of M. It's merely a case picking one of various bad options.

I have a friend who lives there and I’ve been there. It would be fine except that you have to have a roommate. I’d recommend Pembina Hall (where you don’t have a roommate) ahead of Arthur Mauro any day. Living in PH is basically like having a studio apartment, the only catch being that you’re obligated to subscribe to the meal plan and don’t have a kitchen. Don’t worry, however, the cafeteria at Pembina Hall is actually pretty good.

There isn't a huge amount of interest in jobs outside of Winnipeg among U of M law students and legal recruiting at the U of M differs from what seems to be the norm at other law schools. We have OCIs but the only firms that participate are from Calgary. The big Winnipeg firms hold wine and cheese type events throughout the year in lieu of participating in OCIs. Winnipeg is kind of insular and this extends to the law school; to the extent that there's much interest in getting jobs outside of Manitoba that interest is mostly in SK or AB rather than Ontario. That being true, I don't think it would be all that difficult to get a job *anywhere* in Ontario coming from U of M and your chances at landing a job will likely vary wildly according to specific location and desired practice area. A large number of lawyers in northwestern Ontario (maybe a plurality) are U of M grads, so if you wanted to be a family lawyer in Kenora, you're probably set going to U of M. As Hegdis pointed out, if you want to do corporate law at a national firm in Toronto, then you're probably in for more of an uphill battle (again, not impossible, however).

You're not missing anything. Unless things have changed since I applied two years ago, U of M doesn't require a personal statement or anything along those lines. It's a purely numbers-based school. Also, (and again, unless this has changed) they accept scanned copies of transcripts for the purpose of considering applications and only ask for official transcripts in the event that you receive an offer. You can, however, send them beforehand if you wish.

I forgot to add that Manitoba also has a Provincial Nominee Program. I don't know specific details about it or how it compares to the program in Quebec, but it's probably worth looking into. On the point of the scare-mongering about the winter in Winnipeg, it's worth noting that this past winter was actually bizarrely mild. Like, fall coat weather pretty much all winter. Most days I don't think it was any worse than -10 Celsius, if that.

Winnipeg isn't nearly as bad as people make it out to be. The winters can be harsh, but that's the only big drawback IMO. Then again, I'm from Manitoba so I'm acclimated to harsh winters. I did my undergrad out of province and returned to MB shortly before law school and don't regret my decision to do so. Winnipeg is actually a pretty fun city and a nice place to live. The job market here is also reasonably good, whereas I've heard that it's pretty wretched in Montreal (not to mention exceedingly hard to break into if you're not fluently bilingual in French and English); so that may be something to take into account in your decision making.

I guess the answer to my question would appear as if it had been responded to in the post itself, however a few of my profs finished marking the midterms late and considering that the date for entering the final exam marks is so soon after they were actually taken (and like I said, I was unsure whether or not that particular cut-off date applied to the faculty of law), I was wondering if that was actually the date that I could expect the marks to be up or if, in actual fact, they are usually posted later.

So I'm a 1L and completed my exams last Wednesday. I'm well aware that I should probably just chill and wait for them to come when they come, but I was wondering if any upper-year students could tell me when, historically, final marks are usually up. I tried looking for this information on the U of M website but only found that the general cut-off date (so, not specific to the faculty of law) for professors to enter marks was May the 2nd and that thereafter if they haven't been submitted the grade will show up as "IP" in Aurora until such time as the grade has actually been submitted. I'm guessing, based on the time it took for us to get our midterm marks back, that I'm looking at some time between mid-May and early June for receiving the final marks. Does that sound accurate to anyone or am I way off? Thanks!

The early admission index score last cycle was 75.8 or something along those lines. So yes, it is absolutely worth your time to apply. Unless the index score increases dramatically this year you're a shoe-in. It's irrelevant whether or not you have any connection to Manitoba except if you're getting in off the waitlist and I doubt you'll have to wait that long unless, of course, the admissions people screw up how your index score is calculated.

If what you want to know is how to apply to U of M from out of province then the answer is that the process is the same as it would be for a Manitoba resident. That information can be found here: http://law.robsonhall.ca/jd/admission-to-first-year

There seemed to be an upsurge in applicants everywhere from 2008 onwards at most law schools in the country, with that leveling off a couple of years ago (probably because the economy improved - I suspect that we may see more people applying to law school again soon). I don't think it's a phenomenon that's restricted to the U of M. The fact that TRU and Lakehead have also opened law schools has probably served to reduce the competition for seats as well. As for what the legal market is like in Manitoba, I don't have firsthand knowledge of what it's like in Winnipeg, but in northern Manitoba there is definitely a shortage of lawyers and if you're serious about working there then you can probably find yourself a job. At the same time, that is probably true of the northern/rural areas of most other provinces as well.

I think it varies from year to year. I've heard that it's been as high as 50/50 in the past, but according to the dean this year's incoming class was 80% Manitoban. I have, however, met a couple people from Vancouver and one from Brampton.

I've been told by a few friends of mine who are recent U of M law grads that the Socratic method is no longer frequently employed, even in first year, and that classes consist mostly of lectures. To what extent is that actually the case?